EIPA’s experts Sabina Lange, Wolfgang Koeth and Constance Bobotsi joined the second session (online) of the Fourth European Citizens’ Panel last weekend, providing their expertise in the context of the Conference on the Future of Europe.
Over the course of the weekend, citizens were asked to break down the questions of ‘EU in the world’ and ‘Migration’, and discuss possible solutions to the problems they had identified in the panel’s first session in Strasbourg. With their expertise in EU governance and EU external relations, Sabina and Wolfgang provided citizens with valuable input to better understand the status quo and the available policy options. Sabina addressed citizens on decision-making in EU foreign policy, examining the debate between unanimity and qualified majority voting. Wolfgang focused on how the EU sets rules that affect third countries. Constance served as a fact checker and was given a chance to observe the whole weekend of discussions by the citizens taking part in this panel.
EIPA together with Studio Europa will be co-hosting the third session of this panel in Maastricht. The Conference on the Future of Europe is a process of the European Commission, the European Parliament and the Council of the EU announced in May 2021, which aims to engage the populations into discussion on the medium to long-term future of the EU and what reforms should be made to its policies and institutions.
